The Shocking Statistics Behind Identity Theft

A comprehensive analysis of fraud occurrence done by Javelin
Strategy & Research states that in 2017 there were 16.7 million victims of
identity fraud. This number is a high point which has toppled the previous
year’s record high as well. In the same year, 6.64 percent of consumers fell
victim to identity fraud and in general, identity fraud victims increased by 8
percent over the last year. Here are some key facts to know:

Account Takeover Is
the New Theft Arena

Referencing the analysis, we can see that account takeover experienced
a significant boost in frequency. It has tripled from 2017 to 2018 and reached
the highest it’s been in 4 years. EMV is making credit card fraud more
difficult, however, there are always workarounds to this and fraudsters have
been quick to adapt. Dubbed “card not present transactions”, they refer to transactions
in which swiping a card is not necessary. In essence, this is referring to
online/e-commerce transactions where it is often the case that only the card
information and basic personal information are necessary. These transactions
have always been highly exploitable which is why the topic of online
information privacy and advanced security encryption protocols are of the
utmost concern going forward into the digital age.

Data Breaches More
Common Now

Due to card not present transactions becoming increasingly
common, the new arena of theft is focused on getting consumer information and
taking over accounts. Since we are in an information/data economy at this point
in time, it is no longer the target of cybercriminals to get credit card info
alone. Instead, data breaches have been a big focus for cybercriminals and security
professionals alike.

At this point, it isn’t unusual for a number of online
non-banking institutions to have possession of your data. Your personal data,
your billing data, your spending habits, etc. It is every companies greatest
nightmare to be the target of a data breach. In 2013, Target was the
unfortunate victim of a breach in data which amounted in them having to pay a
staggering 18.5 million dollar settlement. This fine is the largest ever for a
data breach thus far and the breach was estimated to have put the information
of at least 40 million Americans out into the wrong hands.

This marked the quick transition into accepting EMV chips
for many businesses as mandated by legislation (fraud liability rests on all
merchants who did not comply by a deadline in getting new card readers).
However, the misconception is that it was the weak magnetic strip technology
which was the cause of the breach when it was in fact hackers who had gained
access to the customer service framework and installed malware onto it—thus
capturing the information of customers rather than solely their credit card
data. Information is the name of the game.

Document Shredding
Services in Columbia, South Carolina

Shred With Us is a premiere shredding service that aims to
keep your data out of the wrong hands. As you may know, most paper mail—such as
bank statements, bills and other snail mail regulars contain very sensitive
data. Alone a single document may not provide much, but you may be shocked to
know how much other information about you or your business can be obtained by
just getting one or two pieces of the puzzle. It is crucial that documents be
disposed of in the proper manner so as to not give criminals any leads to go
off of.

Not only is it downright risky to not dispose of your
documents adequately, but it is in many cases required by law to do so
responsible for the sake of your employees as well as clients. There are regulations
in place and fines for those who do not follow them. We are experts on the
legislation surrounding document disposal, you will never have to worry about
privacy concerns or fines due to mismanaged paperwork and data. To learn more
about our services, contact us here or give us a call at (803)-358-2024.